genin
09-29-2011, 09:23 AM
This is not aikido related. I have a friend who has six kids. She and her husband live in a small three bedroom apartment and they are poor. There are 8 people living there with only two beds. Kids are between 3 and 12. The parents have one bed and the other bed is literally just a bare mattress that sits propped up against the wall in an empty room in which the kids use the space to play during the day. At night I guess they pull it down and a few sleep on the bare mattress. The other room just has a couch and a tv in it, but is not a bedroom that anyone can sleep in. I assume the other kids sleep on sofas or with the parents, I don't know.
This has always concerned me. I even offered to build them bunk beds, provided they pay for the building materials. But I feel that pride and an unwillingness to take initiative have prevented them from taking me up on that offer. I've tried to talk to her about this, but I haven't been able to get her alone long enough to voice my feelings. Am I right in thinking that these children should have some sort of bedding of their own? And if that's not possible now, shouldn't it at least be goal of the parents? I feel like they are too content in just letting their children nestle together on the floor or sofa like wolves. I honestly find it neglectful to let boys and girls of mixed ages to sleep with each other like that. You never know if it might lead to inappropriate behavior, or worse. What do you guys think? What should I do? Should I just let this go?